


Behind You

by WordsDontMeanShit



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Inspired by Arya and Gendry's Book Meeting, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-29 16:59:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20799926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WordsDontMeanShit/pseuds/WordsDontMeanShit
Summary: Meeting your soulmate was supposed to be a happy event. Everyone said so, though not everyone is so lucky. Arya quickly glanced at the words on her wrist, realizing that she just met her soulmate. Neither of them acknowledged that fact instead he offered to take her to a place where she would forget all of her troubles.Soulmate AU inspired by how Arya and Gendry met in the books.





	Behind You

**Author's Note:**

> I have been feeling a bit unmotivated/uninspired with my writing recently so I decided to open all my WIPs and see what happens! I was able to finish this soulmate/modern au that has been inspired by their first meeting. Hope you guys enjoy! :)

“Vodka on the rocks.”

“Rough day?”

“You could say that.”

_Miss Stark, you should get used to the idea that he may never wake up again. _The doctor’s words replayed in her mind as she downed her drink and requested another one. She had visited the hospital every day since she found out that he father and younger brother, Bran, were in a car accident. _Bran woke up. He would never walk again. But he woke up. _Her heart ached as her family’s lives changed in the aftermath of the accident that had crippled her brother and left her father in a coma. _He had to wake up._

Arya stirred her drink slowly when another bartender appeared behind the bar. Arya recognized the man- she had met Yoren with her father when he visited their home in Winterfell to pay his respects to her family after uncle Benjy had passed. She greeted the older man with a sad smile.

“How’s your father doing?” Yoren asked with a sad smile of his own.

_He’s stable for now, but the doctors don’t think that he will ever wake up again._ “He hasn’t woken up yet,” Arya replied gloomily, looking down at her drink, stirring the ice some more. She felt numb. _What if he never wakes up?_ She felt like crying, but she had no tears left. She cried when she first saw Bran and her father barely alive at the hospital. Barely alive was still alive, she reminded herself.

Arya had cried nonstop since then. She cried again when Bran woke up. And again, when the doctor told them that Bran would never walk again. And again, as she sat by her father’s side each day and prayed to the Old Gods, her father’s Gods, to have mercy on him and allow him to wake up and return to their family. _Please don’t die, I need you, father._

Arya continued to drink in silence, silently pleading with whatever gods would listen.

*****

Hours passed and Arya hadn’t moved from her place at the bar. She nursed her second drink while people filtered in and out of the bar.

A man around her age sat next to her as she sipped her drink. “How about I buy you another drink,” the man offered.

“No thank you,” Arya replied, not in the mood.

The man inched closer to her. “I’m Ramsey, by the way.”

Arya simply nodded and went back to staring at her empty drink, but it seemed that Ramsey didn’t know when to give up. “If you’re not interested in the drink, we can just get out of here. That is how your night is gonna end anyway.”

Arya raised her eyebrows, appalled at his comment. “Fuck off. I’m not interested.”

“Playing hard to get, I like that in my women.”

Arya was about to tell this disgusting piece of shit to fuck off again or he would regret it when a handsome stranger stood up for her. “Leave her be,” the man told Ramsey, not interfering any further. Unlike Ramsey, the Bull- she named him because of the large tattoo on his right bicep- was cute. He was over six feet tall with raven black hair and a nicely built body.

Ramsey glared at the Bull for a moment before he turned his attention back to her with a cocky smile. Ramsey didn’t seem to understand what the word no meant. He leaned in closer toward her and whispered in her ear. “This is inevitable, so you can delay it but you are gonna come home with me anyway. You’ll be screaming my name before the night is over.”

Arya was finally fed up with Ramsey’s harassment. She elbowed his face, which was too close to hers. While he shouted in pain, grabbing his now bloodied nose, Arya jumped off her high chair and kneed Ramsey in the balls before replying, “You should have fucked off like I asked.” Ramsey doubled over in pain.

Arya made eye contact with the Bull while Ramsey continued to groan in agony. The Bull smirked at her with one eyebrow subtly raised. Arya noticed that his eyes were a beautiful deep blue that she could get lost in. Despite feeling drawn to the Bull, Arya wasn’t in the mood to meet new people so she turned away from their unnaturally long gazing. Arya hopped back up onto her stool and hoped that she could finally drink her vodka in peace. She only managed to take one sip of her vodka before she heard the Bull speak again, this time to her. “Behind you.”

Arya paused for the briefest of seconds. She knew those words. She quickly composed herself and turned around to see Ramsey coming at her with an angered expression on his face and very visible wounded pride. Arya punched him before he could hit her, breaking his nose.

Ramsey tried to retaliate with a punch of his own, but Arya dodged it.

It felt good to hit something that she punched Ramsey again and went to punch him a third time, but Yoren grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the fight.

“None of that in here,” he told her before grabbing Ramsey by the collar and throwing him out the bar. Ramsey glared at her before spitting blood on the ground.

Arya turned to the Bull to thank him for his assist, but he spoke instead.

“Remind me not to mess with you in the future.”

Arya thought back to his first words to her, the words that she knew so well. The words that appeared on her wrist when she was going through puberty at the age of twelve. She had always wondered what she was doing that her soulmate’s first words to her were behind you. Maybe she was in his way and he was trying to tell her to move- Arya always wondered what her response would be. She would probably call him a name for being stupid.<strike></strike>

Arya didn’t say anything for a moment. She was never one to care about having a soulmate. She suddenly understood why she had felt a pull toward him earlier. She decided if she had to have a soulmate, she was happy that it was him. An odd thought to have about a stranger that she had just met and barely interacted with.

“Don’t piss me off and you’ll have nothing to worry about,” Arya said more aggressively than she intended to. She noticed the Bull touch his left wrist at her words.

Both of them knew who they were to each other, but neither of them said anything to acknowledge it. Once again, they just seemed to be staring at one another. The Bull broke their gaze, finally speaking, “Wanna get out of here?”

“Where do you have in mind?”

“Somewhere special to forget your troubles.”

*****

_Don’t piss me off and you’ll have nothing to worry about. _Gendry knew those words all too well. Those were the words that he received around his thirteenth birthday. He frowned when he saw them. Like most kids, he had received his mark during puberty. He didn’t want a mark. He wanted to be like his mom and she didn’t have a mark. He tried to hide it at first, ashamed that he had one. His mom had comforted him and assured him that having a mark was a good thing. He wouldn’t go through life alone. She explained that everyone was destined for someone, but the ones without marks just don’t meet them in this lifetime.

The She-Wolf— he named her because of her fierce nature and wolf tattoo on her shoulder— stared at him with the most beautiful grey eyes that he had ever seen. His hand went to his wrist as realization hit him about who she is.

Neither of them addressed their marks. It seemed to be unspoken agreement. He broke their silence asking, “Wanna get out of here?”

“Where do you have in mind?” She asked with an unfamiliar accent. The little She-Wolf wasn’t from King’s Landing and he wondered what had brought her to the capital, which had led to their chance encounter. There was a sadness hidden in her stormy grey eyes, he sensed that it wasn’t a happy event that led her here, that led her to him.

He decided to take her to the place that always took his troubles away. It was a hidden gem of King’s Landing that barely anyone knew about even the locals. His mother used to take him there when he was a kid and then he would go by himself after she died, swearing he still felt her presence there.

“Somewhere special to forget your troubles.”

He offered his hand out to her. She looked at him with a skeptical look, but took his hand anyway. He smiled at her as he led her to his black pick-up truck.

“M’lady,” Gendry says as he opens the car door for her.

“Don’t call me that.”

He suddenly realizes that he doesn’t even know her name and didn’t introduce himself either.

“What should I call you then, m’lady?!”

“Arya.”

“Gendry.”

The car ride was mostly silent, a comfortable silence though. Gendry drove them to his favorite spot in the whole city even though it was really outside of the city. He decided that his mother was right and he was happy that Arya was his soulmate despite not wanting one. Her presence made him feel happier, lighter somehow. What an odd feeling to have about someone that he had just met.

He felt a pull toward the bar that day. He passed it every day as he returned from work, but today, he felt like he had to go in. He felt like the universe was compelling him to go to the dingy bar. He couldn’t understand why until he saw her. Gendry instantly wanted to get to know her. He saw that asshole hit on her and wanted to pummel his face, but he knew she could handle herself. He was so impressed when she repeatedly punched him herself. 

Gendry reached for her hand while he drove, wanting to hold it again.

Once they arrived, Gendry hopped out of the car with Arya following.

“Did you bring me here to murder me,” Arya joked, looking around at the woods. “It is a beautiful place to be murdered.”

“No,” Gendry laughed, if I was gonna murder you, it wouldn’t be on this beautiful mountain.” The sun was setting and all of King’s Landing was visible from the mountain. Gendry loved how even that shit city could look majestic from on top this mountain. 

He walked to the back of his truck, and rolled a blanket out before laying down looking up at the setting sun. Arya followed, laying down next to him.

“It is beautiful here,” Arya repeated looking toward the sky.

“My mother used to take me here when I was younger and after she died, I would come here to feel close to her.” Gendry admitted. He rarely talked about his mom, but felt that he could with Arya.

“I’m sorry,” she said before whispering in a low voice, “My father is in a coma.”

Gendry inched closer, until he was laying directly next to her. He pulled her into a hug, wishing that he could take her pain away. Wishing that she didn’t have to go through the pain of losing a parent, he knew how hard it was. Arya tensed for a moment, before leaning into his embrace. She put her head into his neck, inhaling his scent.

She pulled away after a moment, “What was that for?”

“Felt like you needed a hug.”

She smiled at him, pulling him back into an embrace.

He held her tightly, wishing to comfort her in whatever way that he could. He continued to embrace her, not moving as he felt her softly cry in his arms, giving her time to let it all out.

He wiped away her tears without a word as she cuddled into him to watch the rest of the sunset. Once the sun had finally set, the clear sky shined with the stars in the night sky. The stars were more beautiful than the sunset. Gendry pointed at the great red comet, “The Red Sword,” he named it. Arya agreed that it resembled a sword while the red color made it look like it was leaking with blood.

*****

An annoying vibrating sound woke Arya up. Her phone continued to buzz loudly from her bag. She sat up to see who was calling her when her phone stopped buzzing.

She looked at Gendry, who was still asleep next to her. She smiled at how peaceful he looked. They had fallen asleep gazing at the stars on the warm summer night. Arya slept on Gendry’s chest, which made a surprising comfortable pillow. Their hands were still intertwined and her heart leapt at the fact that they had fallen asleep holding hands.

Her phone started to buzz again, startling Arya. Gendry sat up suddenly awake from Arya’s spooked reaction.

He grinned at her and squeezed her hand, which was still in his. “Morning,” he mumbled sheepishly.

“Morning.” The phone continuously buzzed, “Sorry, I—” She let go of Gendry’s hand and reached for her phone seeing Robb calling her. She stilled temporarily, terrified that he was calling with bad news regarding their father. Gendry took her hand once again, sensing that she needed his strength to answer the phone.

“Hey Robb, how’s dad doing?” She held her breathe as she waited for a response. _Please be okay._

She bit her lip as she anxiously waited to find out.

“Dad woke up.” Happy tears slowly slipped down her cheeks while Robb’s voice slowly faded away. “Miracle”, “the doctors can’t explain it” were passing phrases that Arya heard Robb say before ending the call. Instant relief filled her body as she let out a gleeful yelp before leaping into Gendry’s arms. He easily caught her and embraced her. “My father woke up,” she mumbled into his warm arms.

She pulled away to look into Gendry’s deep blue eyes, a man that she had only met the night before and yet she could already see a future with him— he had helped her through the worst moment of her life, holding her as she cried and helping her briefly escape on this beautiful mountain overlooking the city.

“Thank you for being here for me.”

“I’ll always be here for you.”

Arya cupped Gendry’s face and kissed him softly, trusting his words.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments make me crazy happy! :)


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